Officials at JB Elmendorf, Alaska, have identified the four airmen who died in the base’s C-17 crash. They are Maj. Michael Freyholtz, 34, pilot with the Alaska Air National Guard’s 249th Airlift Squadron; Maj. Aaron Malone, 36, 249th AS pilot; Capt. Jeffrey Hill, 31, instructor pilot with the active duty 517th AS; and MSgt. Thomas Cicardo, 47, 249th AS loadmaster. (See Friday’s Daily Report coverage.) Freyholtz, from Hines, Minn., joined the Alaska ANG in 2007 after nine years in the active duty. He had more than 3,500 flight hours. Malone was a 12-year Air Guard pilot from Anchorage, Alaska, with more than 2,100 flying hours. Hill, from York, Pa., earned his commission in 2002 and was the lone active duty airman to perish. Cicardo, of Anchorage, had more than 5,400 flying hours during his 28 years of military service. This July 28 crash was USAF’s first fatal C-17 flight mishap. (For more on each airman, visit this Web page.) (See also Elmendorf report by John Pennell)
The last remaining T-1 Jayhawk at JBSA-Randolph, Texas, took its final flight to the "Boneyard" at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., on July 15. The 99th Flying Training Squadron will train pilots using T-6 and simulator until it gets T-7 Red Hawk in fiscal 2026.